Canada looking forward to engagement more with Viet Nam
According to Mr. Robert Bissett, Chargé d'Affaires of Canada to Viet Nam, the priority of Canada's Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly during her visit to Viet Nam will be to highlight the growing importance of the bilateral relationship.
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| Mr. Robert Bissett, Chargé d'Affaires of Canada to Viet Nam. (Photo: Nguyen Hong) |
At the invitation of Viet Nam’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son, Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly will pay a visit to Viet Nam from 12 to 14, April 2022.
Mr. Robert Bissett, Chargé d'Affaires of Canada to Viet Nam, gave an interview to the World & Viet Nam Report on the eve of the upcoming visit by Canada's Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly to Viet Nam.
His Excellency, could you touch on the purpose and significance of Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie’s upcoming visit to Viet Nam, as the two countries will celebrate their 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations in 2023?
Canada's Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly will visit Viet Nam for her very first time. She will visit Viet Nam from 12 to 14, April 2022.
This will give her an opportunity to meet with Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and others for the very first time in person.
For us, this visit is very significant because it underscores the importance of the bilateral relationship between Canada and Viet Nam.
What will be the Foreign Minister’s priority during her time in Viet Nam?
Her priority during her time in Viet Nam will be the growing importance of our bilateral relationship.
She will have an opportunity to meet with Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son and the Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien. She will also pay a field visit to Thai Nguyen province.
The visit will give the Canadian Foreign Minister an opportunity to underscore the long-standing bilateral ties between the two nations in the lead-up to the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations in 2023.
She will also have an opportunity to discuss Canada's engagement in the Indo-Pacific region. She is especially looking forward to discussing with her counterparts in Viet Nam.
| “Canada has been a strong, reliable and effective partner of Indonesia, Viet Nam and ASEAN, and our celebration of several decades of cooperation is an excellent opportunity to reflect on our experiences and achievements. I look forward to visiting Indonesia and Viet Nam to gain a better understanding of the region, to expand partnerships and to contribute successfully to a more secure, resilient, inclusive and sustainable Indo-Pacific for the benefit of all people.” (Mélanie Joly, Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs) |
Viet Nam is Canada’s largest trading partner in the ASEAN region. Bilateral trade continues to grow despite the economic downturn due to the pandemic. In your opinion, how should the two countries sustain and further promote such economic, trade and investment relations in a post-COVID-19 world?
Trade and investment is also an important driver of Canada-Viet Nam ties. Viet Nam is Canada’s largest trading partner in the ASEAN region, and the 10th largest trading partner in the world for Canada.
Since the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) entered into force for Viet Nam in 2019, significant new opportunities have opened up for the two countries' exporters to each other market.
The priority areas for Canadian commercial interests in Viet Nam are agriculture and agri-food, education, information and communication technologies, clean technology, aerospace, and life sciences.
Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, bilateral trade continues to expand. In 2021, two-way trade significantly surpassed the 2020 performance, having reached a record of over $10.5 billion CAD in spite of the economic downturn due to the global pandemic.
In November 2021, Canada and ASEAN announced the launch of Free Trade Agreement negotiations with ASEAN, a historic milestone in the Canada-ASEAN relationship.
In January 2022, Canada and Viet Nam established the Joint Economic Committee, which will help to enhance dialogue and collaboration, advancing bilateral trade and economic relations.
There are also strong people-to-people ties that are highlighted through our educational ties and educational exchanges. Since December 2020, almost 19,000 Vietnamese citizens have gotten permits to study in Canada.
We look forward to growing this fruitful partnership in the years to come, especially in 2023 when we celebrate the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations.
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| Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly. (Source: Macleans) |
In Viet Nam, Canada's Minister of Foreign Affairs will also visit Thai Nguyen province to meet with ethnic minority women and learn more about how Canada’s development assistance has contributed to the strengthening of women-led businesses in the context of climate change and COVID-19 pandemic. Over the years, Viet Nam has made significant efforts to promote the full, equal participation of women in socio-economic development. Could you offer some advice to Viet Nam in its promotion of girl and women's rights? As a key partner of Viet Nam in the issue, how could Canada contribute to the process?
Canada has significantly enhanced our leadership on gender equality and the empowerment of women with a Feminist Foreign Policy. Aligned with Canada’s commitment to eliminate gender-based violence globally, the Embassy of Canada in Vietnam has supported local organisations to empower women and girls.
This year, we supported the Institute for Social Development Studies (ISDS) to implement the project “Safe migration and prevention of gender-based violence against women”. We also funded the University of Information Technology and Communication of Thai Nguyen University to implement another project named "Applying digital technologies to increase the efficiency of online business for disabled women in the Red River Delta region of Vietnam”. A third project supported by the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives is called “Ethnic Minority Women – Champions of Change – Social and economic empowerment for ethnic minority women in Viet Nam”
I recently met with the local partners, coordinators and beneficiaries of this project and was very inspired by all work done by our local partners to ensure everyone’s rights are equally protected, and everyone’s voice is heard.
These projects supported by Canada encourage talented women to participate in social management and economic development, protect women's rights and interests, and eliminate discrimination against women.
We are working together with the Vietnamese Government to continue promoting women's rights, empowering women and helping improve their livelihoods.
Thank you!
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